JBA Consulting is excited to announce the significant application of its ForeCoast® Marine software in a groundbreaking floating offshore wind project. This pioneering initiative, led by Morek Engineering and funded by the UK Government, Department for Transport’s Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition, focuses on the design of a new class of low-carbon installation vessels tailored for the unique demands of floating offshore wind farms.
How will ForeCoast® Marine be utilised?
Floating offshore wind presents a vast opportunity for renewable energy generation in the UK and overseas, enabling project developers to explore deeper waters and harness stronger winds further offshore. To fully realise this potential and to meet ambitious global net zero targets, the sector requires significant improvements to its offshore service fleet, which currently has limited capability and capacity.
The project is a direct response to this challenge and aims to design a cost-effective, low-carbon vessel, capable of delivering serialised installation of the significant quantity of moorings and floating foundation systems required.
ForeCoast® Marine's role will be to simulate and optimise the operational effectiveness of the proposed vessel designs under a variety of environmental conditions, while staying within the operating parameters of low and zero-carbon fuel systems.
By harnessing ForeCoast® Marine's advanced simulation capabilities, the project team will be able to quickly and reliably evaluate the vessel's performance in complex operational scenarios.
Prospective vessel designs will be compared using a range of key performance metrics including carbon emissions, operational and capital expenditure, programme duration, and metocean and logistical downtime. With the vessel design set to achieve approval in principle by early 2025, ForeCoast® Marine's application in this project exemplifies how advanced simulation tools can accelerate the growth of the floating offshore wind sector.
Commenting on their appointment to the project, Nick Law, Technical Director, JBA Consulting stated:
“We’re thrilled to collaborate with Morek Engineering on this transformative project to support low-carbon vessel design. ForeCoast® Marine excels in simulating complex marine operations and, as such, is perfectly positioned to address the intricate challenges presented by operating vessels in some of the world's most demanding offshore environments. This collaboration is set to redefine the limits of the floating offshore wind sector, unlocking enormous potential.”
Morek Engineering Managing Director, Bob Colclough added:
"We are excited to be working with JBA. Their ForeCoast® Marine software will help us achieve the efficiency and emission reductions we anticipate for our low-carbon future floating wind installation vessel (FFIV) project. ForeCoast® Marine allows us to systematically optimise our installation operations strategy by incorporating our insights into existing techniques and offshore methods. Our goal is to develop a vessel concept design configuration that surpasses the capabilities of the current offshore construction fleet, ultimately leading to substantial cost savings for future floating wind project developments."
Discover more about how ForeCoast® Marine is shaping the future of low-carbon marine operations and the global offshore wind industry here.
